Aroundtown Magazine July/August 2022

OUT & ABOUT
WOW Festival
comes to Rotherham
Women of the world unite this summer as a
vibrant, fearless and fun festival comes to
Rotherham to celebrate women, girls, trans
and non-binary communities.
On Saturday 16th and Sunday
17th July, join the Women of the
World family with a chance to
connect with other like-minded
people from across Rotherham and
beyond. Whether you identify as a
woman or know a woman, WOW is a
chance for you to share your stories,
hopes and aspirations to change the
world for the women of tomorrow.
WOW Festival is a worldwide
initiative that started at London’s
Southbank Centre in 2010, focusing
on pressing issues that impact
women and non-binary people
such as working rights, access to
healthcare, gender equality and
female entrepreneurs. There have
been over 100 festivals and events
spanning six continents, but this is
the first time a WOW Festival has
been hosted in South Yorkshire.
The two-day event takes places
in Clifton Park with lots of free and
paid-for events, talks and workshops
to get involved in. There will also be
live performances, a marketplace,
and food and drink stalls across the
weekend.
Try your hand at bushcraft
survival skills, brush up on your DIY
skills with Girls with Drills, have a go
at screen printing, and join in with
the mass dance sessions.
Art plays a huge role in the
WOW Rotherham Festival, with a
range of artists showcasing their
work inspired by everything from
invisible disabilities to portraits of
women in Rotherham. And don’t
miss the Siege Weapons of Love art
installation by Walker and Bromwich,
a series of inflatable sculptures that
combine potent symbols of war
with flowers and organic forms.
There will be a joyful procession on
the Saturday which will culminate
at a beautiful arch decorated with
handmade flowers.
Browse the marketplace
made up of female makers selling
everything from wax melts and
jewellery to fabrics and Afro-
Caribbean spices, as well as food
from Noor café, Big Red’s Diner
and local coffee and drinks pop
ups. There will also be a number
of charity stalls at the festival, from
LGBTQIA+ charities to women’s
health advocates offering advice
around endometriosis, polycystic
ovaries and menopause.
Across the weekend there will
be music by DJ Tonner, Indian choir
Rotherham Sangeet, punk band
Skint Knees, and gothic rock band
The Mother of Crows as well as
poetry and comedy performances.
There will also be a ticketed main
stage area which will be hosting
a schedule of talks and debates
across the weekend. Saturday’s
line-up includes a welcome address
from WOW Festival organisers
from across the globe including
founder Jude Kelly and Rotherham
entrepreneur Dame Julie Kenny;
ideas for change; why women’s
health matters; and barriers women
face in getting and keeping a job or
moving up the career ladder.
On Sunday, share your views on
stories making the news, such as
the cost of living crisis. The main
stage series will end with a lip sync
party at 4.30pm.
WOW Rotherham Festival has
been organised by three community
producers from Rotherham who
have been supported by Flux
Rotherham and RMBC’s events
team. Gemma Gates, Sithule Mguni
and Noor Salih have been building
on the structure of the WOW Global
team while also working directly with
women and girls from communities
all over the borough to do the
people of Rotherham proud.
The producers have been
delivering cape making workshops
for people to wear at the festival,
creating handmade flowers that
will be used for the Siege Weapons
of Love installation, arranging
performers and speakers to appear
at the festival, and contacting
vendors and charities to be involved
in the marketplace.
Noor has an educational
background in creative arts and has
spent most of her working life in the
community at the likes of RotherFed
and Apna Haq. As a feminist and
big fan of WOW Global, Noor says
the community producer role in her
hometown felt like the perfect fit for
her skills and passions. She says:
“I absolutely love Rotherham and
the strong form of community that
exists, and I’ve made it my mission
to showcase the wonderful talents of
Rotherham and surrounding areas
on the stages. The aim is that there
is something for everybody, no one
is left out or behind and we give
power to local women and nonbinary
people through their creativity.
This truly is the celebration and
awareness Rotherham has needed
for a very long time and I hope
just like myself, this shoe fits them
perfectly.”
Fellow producer Gemma runs
a tattoo studio with no previous
experience of working in the
community but has always been
passionate about gender equality
and was once a semi-professional
footballer.
She says: “It’s been a challenge
on a personal level but it has
shown just what I can handle and
the message behind it has kept us
all motivated. Rotherham is full of
variety in its people and it’s time
to celebrate that. It’s not just for
women; the only way we can really
reach gender equality is having men
as our allies so WOW Rotherham is
for everyone.”
30 aroundtownmagazine.co.uk